Carving A Niche
by PaintedZecora
Summary: An overweight trainer with a penchant for sarcasm and computer games struggles to find a place in a changing world and overcome the challenges brought about by a lonely childhood. Heavy steps will become light and free during this journey of self-discovery. Carving out a niche isn't easy, but with an unruly but spirited Trapinch at one's side, anything is possible.
1. Chapter 1

**How It All Started**

Or

**Alan Bigshot Must Be Eliminated At All Costs**

**Disclaimer:** The concept of pokemon as a whole belongs to Nintendo, Game Freak, and Satoshi Tajiri, but all original characters are mine.

It all started the day my parents decided I needed to become a pokemon trainer. Perhaps it was my lack of communication with people in general. Perhaps it was because I now spent most of my days in front of the computer, playing mmos while my brain turned to mush. Or maybe it was because I was fat.

Not go-through-doorways-sideways fat. Just pudgy. Or "pleasingly plump"(Whoever came up with that term deserves to be shot at point blank range)

I can already see some of you getting bored already, and I can't blame you. No one wants to read about a fat mmo geek. And you won't be, for long...

Like most kids, I had wanted a pokemon when I was younger. And like most kids, I would dream about someday having my own team and going on a journey to become the best trainer I could be. Why not a Pokemon Master? Well, because there was no one around who ever held that title. What made someone a pokemon master anyways? The closest thing I could think of was being a Champion.

Anyways, back then my family had fallen on hard times. Dad lost his job, Mom's parents fell sick and had to move in, and we didn't have the money to buy the pokemon I wanted. Or much else, for that matter.

So when I was eight, I loudly proclaimed during dinner that I was going to go out and become a skilled trainer, and get so rich from winning battles we could have all the pokemon we wanted and not have to work for money ever again.

Mom and Dad, who were sitting across from me with their forks halfway to their mouths, paused, the shock evident on their faces. This was the first time I had ever voiced my desire to train, and unfortunately I had little to no experience with pokemon despite being surrounded by them outside home.

"Well...we'll see," Dad said after a glance at Mom.

It was a better answer than I could hope for. But of course, things never happen the way they're planned.

It would be another eight years before I got my first pokemon.

During those years, I began to feel more and more isolated from my peers at school. I was the only one without a pokemon living at home, which they found odd. I felt like I had nothing in common with them, if I didn't have my own pokemon. Some of them had even dropped out of school early to go on their journeys, and when they came back to visit would tell all sorts of stories that I couldn't possibly add on to.

My parents, busy with work and my siblings and _their _parents, never seemed to have enough time for me anymore. So, I turned to the only other comfort I had at home.

My computer.

If I couldn't own my own pokemon, then the next best thing I could do was learn all about them on the internet. I eventually discovered online games, and that opened up a whole new world for me to explore. Suddenly, there were games that allowed one to raise virtual pokemon with a click of the mouse. I could go on training journeys without leaving my room, and raise virtually every pokemon with little effort.

At school, I would always sit in class, seemingly concentrating on whatever bunk was in front of me on the board when really thinking about the eevee I caught on my game and whether or not I should evolve it into Umbreon or Vaporeon, or worrying if the Typhlosion I put in the daycare would have an egg with the complementary Ditto I got for training six pokemon to level 30. I soon began to lose interest in the world around me, eating my dinner alone in my room, and deciding that a virtual pokemon was just as good as, if not even better than having a real one.

I was only fooling myself, and I guess deep down I knew it. No matter how many gym badges I won, or how many legendaries or shinys I caught(most of which through a simple hack),the sense of accomplishment would only last so far as the moment. There was nothing physical to show for all the time I spent in front of the screen, like riding up and down cycling road with 5 party slots of cross-bred vulpix eggs in the hopes that one would hatch with the move Flare Blitz.

Then, my life took a sudden, unexpected turn, and it was all due to the person I least expected.

A few days before I turned 16, my father's boss decided to retire and move to the Orange Islands with his wife and grandkids. The new manager, some young, handsome, fresh-faced big shot from Hoenn who happened to be the son of the CEO, invited all the staff and their families to his house as a sort of icebreaker/farewell to the old manager. Naturally, I was squeezed into something "nice", as my mother put it and was dragged along. Threats usually worked well on me if they involved removing the VGA cable from my computer moniter.

So there I was, standing in the corner I hadn't moved from since the "party" began when Mr Bigshot(as I thought of him mentally)walked over to me.

"So, you're Richard's kid, right?"

"...yes, um..." Not even an hour in but I had already forgotten his name. Smooth. The fact that he called my dad by his first name despite being almost half his age grated on my nerves.

"Alan Baegshoat, but please, call me Alan if you like."

"Ok...Alan."

I was trying my best to keep eye contact, but in all honesty I didn't feel like talking to this guy. He gave me this uneasy feeling, like he could see through me

"Are you hungry, or, thirsty then? We have a lot of refreshments on the patio, if you'd like.."

That patio was the size of my family's apartment, and was already occupied by more people than I cared to be around. And, I would die before allowing myself to eat in front of strangers. I shook my head no, wondering if we'd make it back in time for me to get back on my pokemon sim game and collect some rare candies from a weekly event before it expired.

"Come on, smile, kid,"he smirked, in rather the same way a Sneasel might smirk at its prey. I felt my cheeks growing redder. I hated it when people told me to smile.

"Um..."

"Ah, how would you like to see one of my pokemon? Surely you've started training some by now, haven't you?"

I grimaced. "Not really, I don't actually own any."

The look of horror on his face was almost comical.

"You poor child," he shook his head almost sadly. "You are the saddest thing I have ever seen."

Another wince. I've heard similar comments said about me when others thought I was out of earshot, but it to have it thrown in my face hurt. It was the most I'd ever spoken to anyone in a month, and a single sentence had been enough to reduce me to a state of feeling utterly pathetic. I caught Dad's eye, and I guess the look on my face must have told him something because he started heading over.

"I think I hear my mom calling,"I ground out hurriedly, feeling my face turn red even as I backed away. Never mind that my mother was about twenty feet away and in his field of vision, and that I was already running in the opposite direction.

Well, waddling. Sort of.

As I rushed off, I looked back once, only to see talking animatedly to my father, with hand gestures so erratic he nearly knocked a vase off a shelf. As I watched my Dad set his jaw and answer to a much younger man in what could only be "Yes, Sirs" and "No, Sirs", I could only hope that I hadn't offended his boss to the point of getting him in trouble.

The party ended without any trouble, but even so I noticed Dad giving me contemplative looks from the rear-view mirror as he drove as us all home.

That evening, as I mindlessly powered through another elite four battle, I heard my parents talking with hushed voices, far into the night. And I just knew, in the way that all kids instinctively know, that I was the subject of their heated debate.

For the next few days, I lingered in my room, unwilling to face my parents. Assuming that they saw the truth in what said, and were ashamed of me, and embarrassed because I probably made them look bad in front of Dad's new employer.

Once, from my bedroom window, I even saw Mr. Bigshot himself park his convertible in front of the apartment. A Scizor wearing custom fit sunglasses(!) was sitting in the passenger seat, a pincered forearm resting casually on the sill of the car's window.

Leaving his Scizor in the car, he picked up a package that was in the back seat and carried it over to the front door, which unfortunately wasn't visible from my viewpoint. I heard my mom answer the doorbell when he rang, but I opted to stay quietly in my spot by the window. It wasn't long before I saw Alan head out to his car again, this time with empty hands.

As I stood there wondering what his visit could have been about, the Scizor(who had been sitting in the car patiently all this time) nudged his trainer and inclined his head in my direction. My heart stopped. _Ohhh...shit..._

And Alan Bigshot looked up, grinned as widely as possible, and waved. Stunned, I gave him a half-hearted wave before letting the curtain fall.

That guy was going to be the end of me someday. I just knew it.

It wasn't until the day before my birthday that my parents called me into the living room(which also acted as a dining room). Neither of my younger brothers were present, I noted as I sat across from my parents at the dinner table.

"Well, you're turning 16 now," Dad began, looking a bit uncomfortable. "Got any plans for the future?"

"Not...really,"I said, though it felt wrong to do so.

"Your mother and I have been thinking. We both think it's about time you went out more...spread your wings a little."

I frowned. "You want me to move out?"

"No, its not that," Mom answered quickly, before Dad could get a word in. "What we mean is...well, don't you have an interest in pokemon?"

I looked at them both, still genuinely confused. "Well, I guess so, but I've kind of gotten over wanting to be a trainer." _Lies..._

"Oh, but sweetheart, you seemed so enthusiastic about being a trainer when you were...um, how old?"

"Eight," I told her patiently, watching as they shared another glance. "But I think I'm a bit old to even start out so why bother? I have classmates who started their journeys as soon as they turned 13. If I started now, I'd only be made fun of."

"Nonsense!" Dad narrowed his eyes. "Your late grandfather...my father, went on to reach the Kanto league, and he was 20 when he started."

"I didn't know Granddad was a trainer. But, that's different," I insisted. "He grew up with a pet Meowth. He at least owned a pokemon as a child."

"And we regret not getting you one when you asked. But," he added, reaching down and setting a large box with holes bored on the sides on the table. "We would like to rectify that mistake. Happy Birthday Kiddo."

I stared at the box, which looked oddly familiar, wondering if this was all a dream and not even daring to hope it wasn't. I had half convinced myself I was still in bed when my mother reached over and squeezed my hand.

"Open it," she said softly. "It's all yours." My heart skipped a beat when I heard the pokemon inside yip, as if in agreement.

Even as I watched the box shake slightly as whatever was inside shifted around, I was already certain of what was in there. My parents were well aware that I loved Eevee, and its evolutions. The huge poster of all the Eeveelutions pinned above my bed was testament to that. They were popular pets, and were highly reputed among both kids and teens. With an Eevee as my companion, I would be instantly popular. And when it evolved? I paused, trembling a little, basking in my sudden euphoria.

The Eevee shifted around inside some more as I reached to pull up the flaps that loosely sealed the box closed.

I would finally have something in common with the rest of my peers, something I could easily talk about at school, something that-

"WHAT THE HELL IS THAT THING?"

A large, round orange head with unnaturally shiny round eyes, attached to an equally orange and round body poked its head out of the box and stared at me. And stared. And stared. Before letting out another puppy-like "yip" and sinking its serrated jaws into my arm.

Bloody hell.

* * *

_What did I do to deserve this? _ I thought, lying flat on my bed with my good arm over my eyes.

"Yip."

I tensed, then uncovered one eye and glared at the small orange bug/demon squatting inside the pet carrier on my desk. I literally had no idea what it was. I wasn't even sure it _was _a real pokemon. Even after the little monster tried to bite a chunk out of my arm, my parents insisted I take it to my room to get to know it better.

My forearm, swabbed in antibiotics and covered in several layers of bandages, throbbed at the thought of those steel-trap jaws. In all honesty, it didn't even seem to be self aware, only reacting to a couple of treats I tossed through the metal bars of its carrier. Maybe it reacted only to whatever was right in front of it?

"Yip, yip."

I groaned-I had really set myself up for disappointment this time around. How could my parents even afford an Eevee? Of course they'd get the cheapest poke- I looked at the monster- _thing _they could find. I glanced up at the Eeveelution poster and felt my heart plummet. I suppose I was being a little bit of a brat-I should have been grateful for even getting a pokemon in the first place, and running away and locking myself in the bathroom to treat myself(and maybe cry a little) was no way to thank my parents.

Still, I wish they had done some sort of research before getting me a-

I frowned, realizing that I didn't even ask my parents what species it was. Was it a new sort of pokemon? I didn't remember seeing it in any of my computer games, which were based both here in Johto and in Kanto.

My curiosity getting the better of me, I pulled up a well-known search engine and typed in a short description: Creepy orange pokemon with big round head that bites.

The search engine came back with results for the words 'pokemon' and 'orange', so clicked a promising link at the top and found myself looking at a web page showing which pokemon belonged to certain color groups.

Since there seemed to be no "orange" group, I looked at the next closest color that could match(pink) and found nothing useful. I got the same result after going through the "red" group. At first, I skipped right over the other color groups, but after finding nothing I began looking through them too. Finally, I reached the "brown" group and, despite it not being brown at all, there it was.

"Huh...Trapinch, the Ant Pit Pokemon, native to Hoenn..." I read out loud and sat back in my chair.

"So you're from Hoenn then...I knew Hoenn had different pokemon, but I've never even heard of you till now."

"Yip!" The Trapinch began gnawing through the bars of its carrier, much to my horror. I turned back to the screen.

"Lets see...digs pits and waits at the bottom to snatch up any prey who falls in with large, serrated jaws...yup, I can totally believe that. Evolves into...an even bigger bug," I frowned, skipping several paragraphs and clicking the arrow that linked to a page with the picture of a fragile looking insect known as a Vibrava. "Geeze, a bug like this would get fried by electrics in a second!"

A knock sounded at my door just before I could read further.

"Come in," I said, turning off the monitor.

"Hey sweetie,"Mom opened the door and poked her head in. "Mind if we talk a bit?"

Stifling a groan, I nodded. "Sure...what's up?"

"Let me get straight to the point. Your father and I...we feel as if you're trapped in this room." She looked at my stomach, bit her lip, and went on. "We want you to take your new pokemon seriously, and bring out the potential in both it and yourself."

"What potential?" I sighed. "Mom, I know you and Dad want what's best for me, but I don't think I'm even cut out for training or traveling."

"And that is why you need to take things a little bit at a time. Now get dressed."

"Dressed? Are we going somewhere?" It was now that I noticed she was wearing a light coat and holding her purse.

"We need to go to the pokemon center in Goldenrod and register you as a new trainer, of course."

"But-"

"Oh and before we go, I wanted to say...I know this pokemon is far from what you wanted, and I know it will take some getting used to..."she frowned as said pokemon finished chewing a hole through its carrier and crawled out onto the floor and promptly fell asleep. "But I was assured that training it is well worth the effort."

Privately, I thought training it to become Vibrava was a waste of time, but of course I wasn't going to tell her that. It was as we were getting into the car(trapinch inside the broken carrier across the back seat)when another thought occurred to me.

"Hey Mom? There's just one thing I want to ask before we go."

"Shoot."

"Where did you get this Trapinch from? I heard they're not from around here."

She smiled, and I got a bad feeling in my guts.

"That, my dear, is nothing to concern yourself with. You have a smudge on your cheek. Here, let me get that..."

And in the midst of wrestling her saliva covered thumb away from my face, I completely forgot about my question.

* * *

I would like some input on this story;I have written fan fiction for years under a different name, but this time decided I needed a fresh start. There are so many wonderful pokemon stories out there, the ones I enjoy most being those of the adventure genre that tend to be excessive in the amount of chapters they have. I have hopes for this to become one such tale, the kind in which both trainer and pokemon transform themselves in both the literal and figurative sense. ~PaintedZecora

P.S. I am fully aware trapinch and vibrava are not bug types.


	2. Out of My League

**Out of My League**

Or

**Officer Jenny's Roots are Brown**

**Disclaimer:** The concept of pokemon as a whole belongs to Nintendo, Game Freak, and Satoshi Tajiri, but all original characters are mine.

The ride to the pokemon center was quiet, save for the occasional sound of the Trapinch..._my _Trapinch, bumping its hard body against the sides of its carrier.

It was as if everything were surreal; it was taking longer than I cared to admit for me to get used to the fact that I was finally starting my training journey, even harder to fully realize that I now had a pokemon I could call my very own. Trapinch did not look very remarkable, but then again, I probably looked nothing like the ideal trainer it might have hoped for.

Still, if it was going to be my starter, I had to at least think about how I was going to train it. From what I could tell just by looking, it probably wasn't a very fast pokemon. With a head that big, I was surprised it was able to get around in the first place. Which meant that its strength lay in either defense or attack. I sighed, leaning my head against the headrest. All of that could be sorted out later.

I shifted uncomfortably, the seatbelt strap straining against my stomach a bit. That was another thing to worry about; I was well aware that my physique wasn't ideal for traveling on foot through different terrain on a daily basis. Every trainer I had ever seen was lean, as if the lifestyle kept them very fit. That was another thing that worried me; what if any other trainers I met laughed at me because of how I looked? I didn't want to be associated with the stereotypical image of a fat kid being weak and helpless. Unfortunately, I also wasn't tall or muscular enough to fit the image of a large, intimidating type either. I was sooo screwed.

It was then that I decided; I would simply avoid other trainers for as long as possible during the first few months of my journey, and start my Trapinch off on fighting small wild pokemon. Surely it could take some of the weaker grass types, being a bug and all.(I would come to eat those words during the earliest days of my training journey)

"Yip."

I felt something nudge at my arm, and I looked down to see that my Trapinch had wedged his head in between the car seats and was sniffing curiously at me. I flinched out of reflex, remembering how the razor-jawed pokemon had tried to mangle me earlier.

"You should give him a chance," Mom suggested, sparing the Antlion pokemon a glance as she stopped at a red light.

"That's easy for you to say,"I retorted. "You weren't the one who's arm he almost gnawed off."

"Would you rather I take him back and get you a Dunsparce instead?" I shivered; that threat wasn't even funny. She drove on quietly for another minute. "Honey, for the first time, you will be going out into the world. I know it's odd for a mother to be saying this, but sometimes you've got to take risks, even if they might get you hurt. And you can start by bonding with that Pokemon."

"Yeah..."I forced myself to ground out. "I'll try my best, Mom. You can count on that." She smiled, looking again at Trapinch, this time with a flicker of sadness in her eyes.

"He won't bite you. Just trust him."

Hand shaking a bit, I cautiously reached out and gave it an awkward pat on the head.

"It's a he? How do you know?"Trapinch yipped again and leaned into my touch, closing its eyes and making a weird _thruuuum_ sound deep in its throat.

"I just know these things,"she said, a grin tugging at her cheeks.

"Whatever you say, Mom."I grinned back, no doubt looking like a goon, but this time I didn't care.

Trapinch enjoys being scritched under his chin.

We live in a residential neighborhood on the outskirts of the city, so it didn't take too long to get to Goldenrod. I had already been here a few times on school trips, so I was already familiar with the place. Luckily, Mom managed to find a good parking spot a few blocks away from the center. As she got out, I began to walk towards the Pokemon Center, its bright red roof visible from a quarter mile away.

"Aren't you forgetting someone?" Mom said, raising an eyebrow and inclining her head towards the back window where Trapinch had managed to lean on its hind legs far enough to look at me out the car window.

"Are you sure its safe? What if it bites someone?" With the financial problems we had, the last thing we needed was a lawsuit.

"He's a male, not an it. And I think it will help with the two of you bonding if you get used to walking together. Save for battling, what else will you be doing for most of your journey?"

I couldn't argue with that; after a moment's hesitation, I opened the car door and Trapinch jumped to the concrete ground with a huff. I knelt next to him, placing a hand on his smooth back as he looked around eagerly.

"Are you all right?"

He looked up at me and snapped his jaws twice, as if to say yes.

During the walk to the Pokemon Center, Trapinch walked right beside in a straight line, never deviating from his path. He also kept his mouth partly open the entire time, prompting me to wonder if it was to breathe(he had no visible nostrils)or if it was a defense mechanism of some kind.

A couple of trainers, their own pokemon following along beside them, would nod in greeting. And, to my own surprise, _their _pokemon would greet Trapinch. Depending on what type it was, the greeting ranged from a short bark and tail wag to a stomping of front hooves to even a curious sniff and lick from a friendly mareep. It never occurred to me that stranger pokemon interacted with the pokemon of other trainers outside of battle. I found myself enjoying the walk, and Trapinch's eyes gleamed brighter than usual.

This morning, I would never have guessed I would find myself walking alongside my own pokemon to a Pokemon Center. My heart swelled a little, though I still felt slightly disappointed that I didn't get the Eevee I wanted so badly. I promised myself that I would make an Eevee, or one of its evolutions, a part of my team. Even if I had to travel all the way to another region to do it.

The pokemon center, despite being a hospital of sorts, was a lot more serene than I thought. It was large and spacious, for a start. There were several benches and tables along one side of it, and elevators leading to upstairs rooms.

Trainers gathered in small groups, showing off their pokemon and Gym badges. Others were making use of the videophones in an enclosed room with transparent windows. There were a few unattended pokemon there-I then remembered that Goldenrod City was known as a safe haven for wild pokemon that desired a more urban lifestyle. In fact, it was one of the few places where it was a written law that it was forbidden to capture(well behaved)wild pokemon within the city.

It didn't take long for me to fill out my registration papers and get my picture taken to put on my new trainer license.

While we were getting that out of the way, Trapinch was given a free checkup by one of the several Chansey nurses present. By the time he was brought back, I had finished registration and was waiting at the counter.

"Your Trapinch is in peak health," said Nurse Joy in a cheery tone. "We don't see many trainers with Trapinch come through here often. Does he have a name?"

"A name? Well...I only just got him today so I'm not sure yet." Then, I felt awkward, and wondered if I did something wrong. "Am I supposed to name him?" I asked.

"It depends on the trainer's preference, really. Many pokemon don't seem to mind being called by their species name, though giving them actual names does prevent confusion if more than one type of that pokemon is in the same area. Though, given the fact that Trapinch originate in Hoenn, that is something you won't have to worry your head over. Ah, if you'll excuse me..."she hurried off to attend to a trainer holding an unconscious hoothoot in her arms. I gave her a polite wave as I left with Mom.

Still, I kind of wanted to give Trapinch a name. He still scared the shit out of me every time he opened his mouth, but other than that I felt that a name would make me feel more comfortable around him. Maybe a name would come to mind as I got to know him better.

When we got outside, the sky had darkened noticeably, and it looked overcast.

"I was hoping we could do a bit of supply shopping," Mom sighed. "But it looks like it will rain any second now."

At the word "rain" Trapinch snapped his jaws and shuffled closer to my leg.

"I don't think he likes the rain much,"I told Mom. "I thought water didn't hurt bugs too much." Trapinch seemed to take offense in what I said and promptly sank his jaws into my pants leg.

"Hey...HEY!" I yelped, trying to shake him off. "Cut it out!"

Either he didn't hear me, or he chose to ignore me. Growling low under his breath, he began to drag me(hopping on one leg like a demented Dodrio)in the direction of the car. After a few seconds of this abusive treatment, I eventually got the idea and carried him in my arms, Mom following close behind. Was this all because he was afraid of rain?

What happened next threw all my speculations out the window.

At the same time a bolt of lightening lanced across the sky, a resounding '_BOOM' _resounded behind us, shaking the earth itself and sending debris flying around us. I felt Mom's cold hand seize my arm.

"Don't look back, just run." With a strength belied by her smaller frame, she pulled me behind her as she pushed and shoved her way through the suddenly crowded streets.

Someone next to me screamed, while others gasped and pointed somewhere above my current field of vision.

"They're burning down the Radio Tower!"a woman shrieked into a cell phone. I turned my head to look, and felt my legs go weak at the sight behind me. The once marvelous Radio Tower that was the pride of Goldenrod was set ablaze, angry red flames burning through several thousand pounds of iron and cable. The building on which the tower was set was also on fire.

A tremor beneath the earth jolted me back to my senses, and I realized I had lost Mom in the crowd.

"Trap...pinch!" Trapinch whimpered, shaking in my arms. I held him closer to my body, the top of his round head tucked under my chin.

"Don't worry," I whispered despite the fact that my heart was close to beating its way through my chest. "I won't let you get hurt."

At that moment, I heard another boom, this time much closer to us. I cried out in pain as my cheek got sprayed by gravel and bits of metal. The side of my face stung,red hot, as if someone had heated a needle over a flame and jabbed it repeatedly into my skin.

Reeling in agony, I veered away from the impact zone and ran where the crowd was thickest, barely noticing the ground behind me was getting pummeled by something. It was then that I noticed I was running in the exact opposite direction the car was parked. I felt sick all of a sudden; my hands and feet grew cold. What if Mom got hurt, or worse?

"Out of my way!" A big brute of a man elbowed me as he pushed past, forcing me to fall to one knee. I barely managed to prevent a face full of dirt by throwing my hand out as I fell, cradling Trapinch with the other.

I ran down a narrow side street, turning corners until I found a small alleyway a fair distance from the chaos. My legs grew weak again and I leaned against a brick wall, sliding myself down until I sat down on the cold clammy ground.

"Yip!" Trapinch pushed his smooth face against my wounded cheek. "Pinch..."

He smelled like freshly turned soil, I faintly noticed. My limbs shook even more as I noticed blood staining the area on his face where he had nuzzled me. I wished then that I'd had the foresight to get a pokeball for him at the department store. Although, I realized with a sharp pang, something could have happened there as well.

And Trapinch had tried to warn us, even before it happened.

"You...you're amazing..."I huffed tilting my head back against the wall, feeling the rain hit my skin. I unzipped my hoodie, positioned Trapinch so he lay against my chest(and soaking my undershirt), and zipped the zoodie up again over him.

"Trapinch...Trap..." He nudged me under the chin twice, firmly but not hard enough to hurt.

"I know...you want me to pull myself together and look for Mom,"I replied, glad that I had read his signals correctly. "Let's go."

The rain had slowed to a light drizzle now, and I staggered out of the alleyway, looking in both directions before backtracking towards the heart of the city. I know going _towards _the danger was a bit foolish, but going around would have taken much longer. Of course, going straight through wasn't an option unless I was of the suicidal bent, so I would have to take a roundabout eventually, only a much shorter one. Evidently I wasn't the only genius who came up with the same idea. More people were cautiously coming back, staying close to doorways and never traveling openly in the street. A couple, I noticed, had let caution fly to the wind and were heading straight towards the radio tower. I pulled my hood further over my head.

As I got closer to where department store was, I kept a lookout for any signs of Mom. I hoped at this point that she was waiting at the car, though knowing the way most parents act, she would probably stay in the danger zone for a while to look for me. By now several burnings were awash in flames, and, to my shock, trainers and pokemon were battling openly in the streets.

A cluster of trainers all in black were clustered in near the front of the global trade station, A bright red 'R' emblazoned across their chests. Their pokemon, a mix of houndoom, crobat and golbat, machokes and a pair of steelix were steadily beating back the pokemon of the defending trainers. One trainer's pikachu used thunder wave, paralyzing all the flying pokemon right before a black and tan blur knocked it down and stood menacingly over it. The Houndour let out a short howl, and several other houndour came running up.

"Leslie, no!" A young female trainer with red hair cried out, tears falling down her face.

"Pi, Pika!" the Pikachu shrieked as she was literally buried under a pile of snarling, bloodthirsty canines. Despite their best efforts, the trainer's other pokemon were unable to get past the tight ring of enemy pokemon surrounding the electric rodent.

"Tra..." Trapinch whimpered, upon seeing the bloody mess when the houndour withdrew. I was frozen in outrage, feeling myself go cold again. I knew that pokemon in the wild sometimes killed each other for food, but it wasn't too often an occurrence since there were many prey animals that were not pokemon. But allowing pokemon to kill in trainer battles?

"Shit...this stuff is out of my league,"I muttered, backing away slowly.

"Stand back, I've got this," a trainer with black hair, yellow goggles, and a backwards-facing cap stepped forward. I wasn't sure how old he was, maybe in his late teens, but after what I'd seen, I couldn't stomach the thought of another innocent pokemon being torn to shreds. I turned to go.

"Come on out, Typhlosion, Togekiss! Show these Team Rocket asswipes what we're made of!"

"Yip! Trap trap!" Trapinch cried, wriggling frantically. I turned around to see what happened, and Trapinch stilled, his eyes fixed on the scene. I frowned. Team Rocket? Why did that name sound familiar?

"You're outnumbered and outclassed, kid," One of the "Team Rocket" members smirked. "Steelix, pulver-"

"Typhlosion, smokescreen behind us! Togekiss, Flash!" The words were barely out of the trainer's mouth before the Typhlosion whipped around spewed a thick cloud of gray smoke towards us and the other trainers. Even so, a dimmed white light shone behind the smokescreen, and it dissipated to reveal all the Rocket grunts and their pokemon clutching at their eyes, several of them screaming and staggering about in pain. _He must have used smoke screen so the Flash wouldn't hurt any bystanders, _I realized belatedly.

Only one of the rhydon and 3 of the houndour managed to avert their eyes in time.

"Rhyyy," The Rhydon glared directly at the Typhlosion and roared a challenge, swinging its horns like an angry Stantler.

"He's all yours, Exbo! Beat him!"The trainer shouted a little too enthusiastically.

The Typhlosion opened its jaws in a many-toothed grin and brought up both forepaws, flicking them towards itself. "C'mere, I dare you," the universal gesture seemed an appropriate reply for the Rhydon.

"Raaaar" The Rhydon slammed its horn into the ground, splitting open the earth and sending a large fissure towards the Typhlosion. The Typhlosion instantly leaped over it and zigzagged towards its opponent, barely managing to avoid getting impaled by stalagmites that burst from the ground.

The Rhydon crossed both arms in front of its face as the Typhlosion bounded off the side of a stalagmite and leapt at it, flaming jaws wide open.

Faster than I would have thought a pokemon of its bulk could manage, the Rhydon shifted from its defensive stance and spun around, swinging its heavy tail around to knock the fire type out from the air. Except that suddenly, the Typhlosion was gone.

The Rhydon was left looking over its shoulder in confusion when the air in front of it shimmered, and the Typhlosion reappeared in a blur, catching the rock type full in the face with a Flamethrower.

Bellowing in pain and clutching its face, the Rhydon stumbled back several paces. The three houndour that hadn't been caught by the Flash intervened now, one of them snapping at the Typhlosion's haunches while the other two attacked from the front.

A houndour had somehow managed to sink its teeth into the side of the Typhlosion's neck, rivulets of blood streaming from the puncture marks on both its throat and shoulders where the canine's claws dug in to keep hold. The last houndour sprang for the Typhlosion's broad muzzle, only to be knocked flying by a clawed paw.

Roaring in fury, the Typhlosion reached up and _ripped_ the other houndour from his neck, throwing it bodily to the ground where it lay unmoving. The last houndour, seeing what had befallen its partners scrambled backwards. Unfortunately for the canine, the Typhlosion was faster and mercilessly raked glowing claws across its face. Yelping fearfully, the bleeding houndour turned tail and ran away from the scene.

"You're doing great, but the Flash is starting to wear off of the other pokemon!" The trainer called. "Wrap this up with-"

"Feh!" The fire type spat angrily, turning towards the Rhydon again. Badly singed, the rock type was still eager to continue fighting, standing solidly on both feet despite its condition.

"All right, so you don't need my help,"The Typhlosion's trainer sighed. "Do as you wish."

The Typhlosion's eyes glowed hotly, and with a growled insult at the Rhydon reached down, tearing a chunk out of the road and lifting it over its head.

"Wait, I said to beat him, not destroy any more public property, I might get fined for that," the trainer yelled.

The Typhlosion dropped the slab of concrete and made a rude gesture at its trainer, just as the Rhydon slammed into it from the side. The impact carried the fire pokemon off its feet, sending it rolling several feet away.

"Ty...pho...,"the fire starter growled, getting to all fours. The Rhydon was coming in for another charge, this time with its horns lowered. Just as it was about to spear the Typhlosion with its drilling horn, the fire pokemon shifted to one side, seized the rock pokemon and used its momentum to swing it around in a circle, letting it go in time for it to crash headfirst into a group of Rocket pokemon that were just recovering from the Flash. One of the steelix swung its head around to crush the fire weasel, only to reel back in agony as it got flamethrowered at point blank range.

Now that its largest opponents were out knocked out, the Typhlosion bounded in among the still-disoriented Rocket pokemon, savagely lashing out with flaming teeth and claws. The flames on its back flared up, so hot that even I could feel the temperature increase from where I was. The ground beneath began to shake, and a glowing red liquid(lava?)began to pour out the sides of the fire pokemon's maw. Its remaining opponents(a couple of houndoom and a machoke) cowered with wide eyes as the enraged pokemon loomed over them.

"Damn it...return! Return!" The Typhlosion roared furiously as it was sucked into the pokeball before it could make its move. The trainer shooked his head and sighed, looking pale.

"Tch! Using Eruption in a place like this...Togebo, use Sing! Aim it at all of 'em." The Togekiss opened its mouth and, focusing its gaze squarely on the rockets, let out several long, melodic notes. Strangely enough, despite the number of other people who were there, the only ones who succumbed to the move were the Team Rocket grunts and all their pokemon. I wondered why they didn't just use Sing right from the start. But then, maybe certain conditions had to be met for the move to be effective. It usually worked right away on my Poketrainer Sim game.

"Let's see how long that took...4 minutes, 48 seconds! All right!" He looked at his Typhlosion's pokeball and grinned. "I know you didn't get to flame blast them this time Exbo. Maybe next time."

"Vigilante justice," Officer Jenny arrived and glared at him, hands on her hips."I ought to arrest you for that," she said sternly. Her eyes softened. "But your help is appreciated- Arcanine and I can't be everywhere at once. There were more Rockets with some tyranitaur up the block." She noticed the Pikachu laying limp in the debris, its trainer crying over it. I felt tears welling in my own eyes, and quickly swiped my hand over my face.

"Get a Chansey team over to the mall, stat! We have a pikachu down,"She ordered into a microphone clipped to her collar. The Arcanine who followed closely behind her took up position beside the unconscious Rockets as her junior officers handcuffed them and returned the pokemon into their balls.

"What will happen to them now?" The trainer asked, shoving his hands in his pockets. His two pokemon flanked him, completely at ease.

"The trainers will likely serve jail time for a number of years. As for the pokemon...we'll have them put in a rehabilitation center, then release them into a league-owned safari zone." Her eyes darkened. "Never again will they belong to a trainer."

* * *

My mind was a whirl of thoughts as I quietly walked towards the car, the mud clinging to the bottom of my shoes like a heracross on a sap-covered tree.

"Sweetheart! I was looking all over for you," I barely turned when Mom barreled into me, throwing her arms around me and squeezing me against her chest. _Some things never change, _I thought, close to dying from sheer embarrassment.

Then I realized she was shaking all over, her face a pale, pale white as she looked at my cheek. "Who did this to you?" She whispered.

"It was just some debris," I reassured her in as calm a voice as I could. "Mom, I...I just want to go home."

She nodded, looking a little less gaunt. "Yes...I...I think we have a lot to talk about when we get home. Your journey..."she fell silent.

On the drive back, the silence continued. Trapinch was lying across my lap, his steel trap jaws mouthing my wrist firmly, but not hard enough to pierce the skin. He was shivering;in fact, we both were.

I always look back on this experience as the most important day of my training career. Before, I had been very uncertain of my own abilities-even more uncertain after watching that trainer's Typhlosion beat all those Rocket pokemon on its own, and knowing how powerless Trapinch and I would have been to defend ourselves had we been attacked directly. And that Pikachu? I wasn't sure what became of it. Hadn't stuck around to see if Nurse Joy had somehow managed to save its life.

But what I had gained from today was a lesson. A good, hard, cruel lesson.

My computer games were full of crap. They glamorized the life of a trainer, made it seem as if there were no bad elements in a world where humans and pokemon supposedly lived in harmony. Well, today's events pretty much threw that sentiment out the window. I closed my eyes. All I could see was the torn up Pikachu. I do not see that happen to Trapinch, or any future pokemon I share my journey with. Trapinch would grow into a Vibrava that could defend itself, and I would grow along with it. But I didn't want to risk us both being taken out early. Despite our rocky start, I wanted Trapinch to grow strong in a safer environment, and after the shit we just went through, the odds were clearly stacked against us.

We would leave Johto tonight.

* * *

Hope this was satisfactory. Feedback would be nice!

And thanks for your review Karnivallo, from the first chapter. I hope I do a good job with the character development! ^^


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